TY - JOUR
T1 - A Comparison of Suicide Attempt Histories of Pediatric and Adult Medical Inpatients and Implications for Screening
AU - Mournet, Annabelle M.
AU - Bridge, Jeffrey A.
AU - Ross, Abigail
AU - Powell, Daniel
AU - Snyder, Deborah J.
AU - Claassen, Cynthia A.
AU - Wharff, Elizabeth A.
AU - Pao, Maryland
AU - Horowitz, Lisa M.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
©, This work was authored as part of the Contributor's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 USC. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under US Law.
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Objective: A suicide attempt is the most potent predictor of future suicidal behavior, yet little is known about how to manage and respond to reports of attempt histories in hospitalized medical patients. This study aims to describe the prevalence and characteristics of pediatric and adult medical inpatients who report a past suicide attempt. Method: Participants were medical inpatients, aged 10–93 years, enrolled in two suicide risk screening instrument validation studies. Participants completed the Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Results: A total of 1324 medical inpatients (624 pediatric, 700 adult) completed the ASQ, with 114 participants (8.6%) reporting a past suicide attempt (51 pediatric; 63 adults). Comparing youth to adults, there was no significant difference between attempt rates (χ 2=0.29, p = 0.59). Youth with a past attempt were significantly more likely to report past week suicidal ideation (OR = 28.22; 95% CI = 5.90, 135.06) and have a history of mental health care (OR = 9.11; 95% CI = 2.59–32.10), compared to those without a past attempt. Adults with a past attempt were significantly more likely to screen positive for depression, compared to those without attempt histories (OR = 5.00; 95% CI = 2.31–10.83). Conclusions: Nearly 9% of hospitalized medical patients endorsed a past suicide attempt when screened. Since adolescence is a critical time for detecting suicide risk, screening that includes past suicidal behavior may be an important means to identify youth with recent suicidal thoughts. By assessing recency of suicide attempts in adults, medical settings may optimize the effectiveness of how positive suicide risk screens are managed.HIGHLIGHTS Roughly 9% of medical patients reported a past suicide attempt when screened. Adolescence is a critical time for detecting suicide risk and intervening. Assessing past suicide attempts in adults can help with managing positive screens.
AB - Objective: A suicide attempt is the most potent predictor of future suicidal behavior, yet little is known about how to manage and respond to reports of attempt histories in hospitalized medical patients. This study aims to describe the prevalence and characteristics of pediatric and adult medical inpatients who report a past suicide attempt. Method: Participants were medical inpatients, aged 10–93 years, enrolled in two suicide risk screening instrument validation studies. Participants completed the Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Results: A total of 1324 medical inpatients (624 pediatric, 700 adult) completed the ASQ, with 114 participants (8.6%) reporting a past suicide attempt (51 pediatric; 63 adults). Comparing youth to adults, there was no significant difference between attempt rates (χ 2=0.29, p = 0.59). Youth with a past attempt were significantly more likely to report past week suicidal ideation (OR = 28.22; 95% CI = 5.90, 135.06) and have a history of mental health care (OR = 9.11; 95% CI = 2.59–32.10), compared to those without a past attempt. Adults with a past attempt were significantly more likely to screen positive for depression, compared to those without attempt histories (OR = 5.00; 95% CI = 2.31–10.83). Conclusions: Nearly 9% of hospitalized medical patients endorsed a past suicide attempt when screened. Since adolescence is a critical time for detecting suicide risk, screening that includes past suicidal behavior may be an important means to identify youth with recent suicidal thoughts. By assessing recency of suicide attempts in adults, medical settings may optimize the effectiveness of how positive suicide risk screens are managed.HIGHLIGHTS Roughly 9% of medical patients reported a past suicide attempt when screened. Adolescence is a critical time for detecting suicide risk and intervening. Assessing past suicide attempts in adults can help with managing positive screens.
KW - Adult medical inpatients
KW - pediatric medical inpatients
KW - suicide attempt
KW - suicide risk screening
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U2 - 10.1080/13811118.2021.1931596
DO - 10.1080/13811118.2021.1931596
M3 - Article
C2 - 34101537
AN - SCOPUS:85107623557
SN - 1381-1118
VL - 26
SP - 1541
EP - 1555
JO - Archives of Suicide Research
JF - Archives of Suicide Research
IS - 3
ER -